Make Me Real
by w.I.n.D.a.N.d.S.k.Y
Summary: When Crown Princess Anna of Arendelle was just a baby, her older sister, Elsa, was killed by the Snow Queen. The king captured the wicked sorceress, and sometimes late at night, her howls can be heard from the depths of the dungeons Anna is forbidden to visit. But Arendelle's princess is an inquisitive child, and rules can only keep her from discovering the truth for so long ...
1. Chapter 1

_~ ~ Anna ~ Present Day ~ ~_

Anna cannot remember dashing through the castle, nearly knocking over her favorite tutor, running through the streets of Arendelle, and finally ending up on the docks, at the end of the longest pier, gazing longingly out at the water, but she supposes all that must have happened. It must have, because here she stands, barely balanced where wood ends and sea begins, wishing she could step out onto the ocean and run into the horizon. Her chest heaves as her breathing slows, leaving the young princess drenched in cold sweat and alight with dread and anticipation. She feels as if her heart is about to explode, it could be any second now, but the minutes pass and she still stands there, whole and alive as ever. It's unfathomable to her, with the feelings that course uncomfortably through her, that she looks the same as she always has on the outside, that she's still just an eighteen-year-old human girl with strawberry blonde hair and freckles and skirts rumpled and creased from running.

Her reflection in the gently lapping water of the fjord reassures her, but the emotions within her leave the young princess shaking, feeling as though she should have been turned inside out or _something _by now.

But she hasn't, and the long minutes of waiting don't change that. They do, however, eventually allow her to make out purple sails adorning a proud, well-crafted ship, and eventually, the golden suns illuminating the sails, and the three silhouettes at the bow she is most anxious to see. Though it will be longer still until she can see the faces of her beloved aunt, uncle, and cousin, Anna's gaze doesn't waver, and her thoughts do not stray from calculating, every few minutes, approximately how long it will be until the ship docks. She doesn't allow them to, because if she did, she might see blood staining the floor of Arendelle's deepest, darkest dungeon, might think of the soldiers she'd overheard just last night, back pressed tightly up against the cold stone of the alcove that barely concealed her, sneaking back to her room after a midnight cup of cocoa. Her mind might recall what they said, and the knowledge is already eating her alive, spinning webs of horror inside her mind, delicate silk nightmares, even as she squints into the descending sun desperately, watching as waves part for the ship whose arrival she so desperately anticipates.

By the time the ship finally reaches the dock, Anna feels as if she has waged an entire battle, her mind is cut up and torn and bloody from trying not to think and thinking about not thinking. Her brilliant aquamarine eyes are unfocused as she greets her Uncle Henrik, King of Corona, and her Aunt Lorraine, the Queen. It is Rapunzel's arrival that she has really been waiting for, but even as she falls into her cousin's arms, her confidante finally here, she feels shaky and out-of-sorts. Even a friendly lick from Rapunzel's chameleon, Pascal, isn't enough to pull her from her funk, although when his tongue attaches to her cheek, she does manage a weak smile.

As their royal parents greet each other, Rapunzel's intense green eyes flit around Anna's face, trying to discern the problem. Anna knows she has not fooled her cousin in the slightest, but her eyes plead the other girl to stay silent. "Later," she whispers, and Rapunzel nods.

Though normally the two girls can't help talking over each other in excitement, the walk back up to the castle is filled only by Rapunzel's chatter; Anna cannot risk being overheard by either of their sets of parents or even the guards flanking them. She tries to concentrate about what Corona's no-longer-lost princess is saying, but only a few words here and there penetrate the fog encasing her mind.

"Anna, did you hear me?" Rapunzel asks finally, seemingly puzzled. "My parents finally agreed to knight Eugene for rescuing me! We're officially courting!" she squeals.

"Finally," Anna smiles, genuinely excited for the girl she considered a sister. "That's so exciting, Punzie. Really," she adds, when the other girl's eyebrows raise in disbelief.

"I've never seen you like this," Rapunzel observes, lowering her voice. "Something must really be ... I mean, I can't ... you're so quiet," she finally manages.

"I have to tell you something," Anna murmurs. "Something big. Something bigger than big. But I can't right now. So please, just keep talking. About Eugene, about Corona. I'm listening, I swear," she says. Rapunzel nods, catching on, and continues talking about how Eugene is adjusting to being close to the royal family, and his mishaps and run-ins with the other knights who, until a few years ago, had been trying to hunt him down. Anna manages to at least laugh in the right places this time around, and something in Rapunzel's eyes tells her she knows something is wrong and that she'll cover for her, so their parents don't notice the lack of chatter that usually surrounds the two. Anna's sure her eyes can't fully express her gratitude, so she loops her arm through her cousin's as they walk, wishing time would hurry up so she could confide in her friend.

Anna hadn't even known Rapunzel until the girl had shown up, barefoot, chameleon on her shoulder, and in the company of a wanted thief, after being missing for fifteen years. The news had reached Arendelle before anywhere else, as the Queens were sisters and had grown up close. Each had lost a child around the same time, and both had let their grief seclude them, wrapping both Arendelle and Corona in gloom and despair. Anna saw real joy on her mother's face for the first time in years when she learned of her niece's return, and the Queen had even managed to leave her bed for a couple of hours. Though her mother had been too weak to leave Arendelle, Rapunzel and her mother, the Queen of Corona, soon visited, re-forging the connection between the two kingdoms. Anna had grown up locked in a castle, Rapunzel in a tower. Both girls were bright, inquisitive, outgoing, and eager for adventure, and they became friends within minutes of meeting each other. Through the three intervening years, Rapunzel came to Arendelle as often as she was allowed, bringing either a parent or her ex-thief/rescuer, Eugene, and she had Anna had become best friends. And though Rapunzel can't replace Elsa, the sister who died before Anna could remember her, she considers the bubbly, kind-hearted princess as close as a sister and cherishes their relationship.

The rest of the evening passes, for Anna, in a similar daze, as Arendelle's Royal Council greets the visiting dignitaries, the two families sit down to dinner, and chatter throughout a prolonged dessert, until finally, the Queen gets tired and excuses herself, and the King follows her to help her to bed. Anna knows her mother has to be exhausted, even walking to the docks and back is more than the Queen has done in years. She watches her mother's retreating back as she limps away, leaning heavily on the King, with guilt, but her discussion with Rapunzel cannot wait any longer. Her quick-thinking cousin excuses them from the table as well, citing the need to make a warm winter coat for Pascal - the small reptile isn't adapted to such cold temperatures. King Henrik and Queen Lorraine accept this excuse easily, and soon the royal couple of Corona retires to bed as well, leaving the two girls to sprint wildly through the halls up to Anna's room.

Once inside her bedroom, Anna leaps at the door, quickly closing it and locking it, wincing as it slams. Her parents are too occupied to reprimand her, it seems, and she sighs in relief as she turns to her cousin, eager to share the secret that has burdened her all day. Rapunzel is consoling an irate Pascal, who doesn't understand - or is refusing to believe - that the winter jacket thing was just an excuse.

"Later, Pascal," Rapunzel promises. "I have to talk to Anna. It's really important," the slim princess pleads with the little bundle on the bed, but Pascal continues pouting, even when the girls wrap him cozily in a handkerchief. "He'll get over it," Rapunzel assures a slightly guilty Anna. "In like, five minutes. Now tell me what's going on!"

Anna glances once again at her closed door before joining Rapunzel on her bed, careful to avoid squashing the angry chameleon as she does. She beckons Rapunzel closer before whispering, "You know the Snow Queen?"

Rapunzel's spring-colored eyes widen in shock. "The one who killed Elsa?" she whispers back. Anna knows the other girl is surprised, she rarely talks about her dead sister or the evil sorceress who had killed Elsa when the little princess was only three.

"Yeah," Anna confirms. "She's ... she's here."

"Here?!" Rapunzel squeaks in alarm. "Oh my gosh, Anna, that's terrible! Where is she? Did she try to attack you too?"

"No, Punzie, she ... she's been here. For years. Ever since she k-killed Elsa. Father keeps her locked away in the dungeons." Rapunzel's mouth is wide open with shock, and a twitch from Pascal proves even he is paying close attention.

"Anna, how do you ... you saw her, didn't you?! You went down there?" Rapunzel gasps.

"Shh!" Anna hisses urgently. "No one can know. Father forbade it."

"How long have you known?"

"Since I was five," Anna admits.

_~ ~ Anna ~ Age 5 ~ ~_

_Despite her tender age, Crown Princess Anna of Arendelle has heard the stories. They have been whispered between maids in dark corners as they fold laundry and dust the dark empty castle, they've been muttered into disgruntled ears of fellow councilmen under the king's watchful but not all-seeing gaze. On the few occasions Anna has interacted with other village children her age, even they know, and dare ask if she has seen the monster that hides deep within the confines of the castle._

_Wide-eyed and innocent, Princess Anna tells them, small chin raised in defiance, that her father, the king himself, told her the howls were only the wind, the cries came from beasts in the woods, the screams were only the creaking of the old castle at night. The other children roll their eyes and shake their heads, regarding the young princess with the same distrustful looks they give the village adults when they know they are being lied to. The incident upsets Anna, but she's comforted by the fact that she lives in the closed-off castle and would rarely ever have to see those children again._

_But the insinuation remains at the back of her mind, and every time she hears even the faintest thump or howl, she shivers with curiosity rather than fear._

_That night, Anna lays alone in her bedroom for hours, long after the castle staff have put her to bed and her father as looked in on her. She can feel the pulses of energy racing through her, invigorating her, and she knows sleep will not find her tonight. The sky dances behind her eyelids until she gives up and gets up, running to the window to see the rainbow of lights that shimmer in the night. She cannot sleep when the sky is awake. She has tried to explain this numerous times, but so far no one has been able to understand._

_Sighing, Anna slips from bed and locates her furry slippers, before tiptoeing carefully from her room, through long, cold corridors and heavy oak doors, until she reaches the ballroom. She surveys the large space, thumb in her mouth, realizing, once again, that despite her insistence that she's a __big-girl Princess__, she really quite small. The cavernous space is lonely, awake and alive but empty, and it is times such as these that Anna wishes most for the presence of her sister, Elsa._

_Anna holds up her fingers and counts, Elsa would be eight now, had she lived. She imagines, or hopes rather, that her sister would have played with her, would have accompanied her on her nighttime adventures and somehow made the empty castle brighter and more friendly. Elsa's voice, in her mind, can chase away monsters and sing fun from pure air. She's not sure what her sister looked like, there are no pictures of her anywhere in the castle, but in her mind Anna conjures up a larger version of herself, with rich brown hair like their mother's, looking down at her and pulling her hand along as they play._

_Instead, all she has is her redheaded doll, its limp form hanging motionlessly from her tight grip._

_A scream echoes through the castle, vibrating up through the very floors, and Anna gasps, for this time there is no mistaking the sounds of a monster. The moaning continues, occasionally punctuated with a shriek, and Anna's cheeks quickly streak with tears as she stands in terror, unable to move. There are vague thumps and bangs beneath her feet, more yelling, this time angry, and a shrill, sharp keening sound. Soon Anna's frightened sobbing mixes in with the noise, and it is there that Gerda, the Head of the female servants and ladies in waiting, finds the little princess after being woken by the noise. Gerda has essentially run the domestic and household affairs of the castle since the king himself was young, and therefore has much experience with young Anna. She scoops up the crying child and returns her to her room, but Anna will not calm._

_The young girl murmurs her horrifying story with her head tucked snugly into Gerda's bosom, prattling on for long minutes, and even after the fifth rendition, the experienced maid can't get her young charge to bed. They are within morning's territory, albeit barely, by the time the king finishes his duties and notices the candle still burning within his young child's room._

_"Father!" Anna shouts jubilantly, launching herself off of Gerda and towards the head that has peered curiously through the slightly open door. King Gunnar of Arendelle hurriedly hushes his precious daughter, wrapping his arms around the excitable child as he thanks Gerda and bids her goodnight._

_Giggling, Anna settles herself against her father's form as he sits them both on the bed, she is wiggly and squirmy and elated at his attention, and he gifts her with a smile, pushing wayward strawberry bangs from her eyes. But the events of the night are not so easily forgotten, and Anna runs questing fingers across the stubble of the king's cheeks, pondering how to ask her question without getting in trouble for wandering the castle at night._

_"What is it, Anna?" Gunnar asks her, the question apparent in her wide eyes and slightly parted mouth, in the way she tips her head and purses her little lips._

_"I heard noises," she whispers, as if afraid the monster in the depths could somehow hear her. "The sky was awake, so __I __was awake, and I went to play in the ballroom ... and I heard the noises."_

_"Mmm," the king says noncommittally. "And what do you think those noises were?"_

_"The kids in the village say it's a monster!" Anna exclaims fearfully. "And I know you told me it was just the castle and the wolves and the wind, but I heard something down there, I know I did!"_

_The fair-haired king scrutinizes his feisty daughter thoughtfully. He knows the questions will not cease until Anna knows the truth, she is too curious and too intelligent, too sheltered, too bored, and so he makes his decision. "What I am about to tell you," he begins softly, reverently, "you cannot repeat to anyone. Anna, do you understand?"_

_"Not even Mama?" the little girl pipes up, and the king sighs, of course it is the child who asks the toughest questions._

_"Your mother already knows of this, but I advise you not to speak of it to her, and when I finish, I think you will understand why." Anna's eyes are wide with wonder and intrigue, and after a pause to let the weight of his words sink in, the king continues. "There is not a monster in the dungeons beneath the castle, Anna. There is something much, much worse."_

_"Worse than a monster?" Anna exclaims, clutching her doll more tightly to her chest and covering its sightless eyes, as if the stitchings of fabric and yarn might be frightened by the room's long shadows._

_"Yes, worse than any monster you have ever imagined," Gunnar confirms. "Anna, do you know what happened to Elsa?"_

_"She died," Anna answers quietly. "When I was a little baby."_

_"There is more to it than that, but you are correct. When you were just a few months old, a terrible sorceress called the Snow Queen broke into the castle, covered everything in snow, and killed your sister."_

_"Why?!" Anna exclaims, quite upset, and the king wonders if he has done right in telling her this. "Why, Papa? Elsa was only little, she was littler than me, why did the Snow Queen kill her?" _

_"Even to this day, Anna, I do not know." After this admission, father and daughter are briefly quiet._

_"Did you get her, Papa? Did you kill the bad Snow Queen?" asks Anna finally._

_"Some soldiers, the guards, and I managed to capture her before she could get to you and your mother. We imprisoned her in the dungeons, where she remains to this day. Because, my precious Anna, try as we might, no one has been able to kill that witch. Many good men have perished in the attempt. So then, the noises you and others have heard at night, the screaming and moaning? That is us trying to rid the world of her evil, and sometimes paying for it with our lives."_

_"Oh," says Anna, eyes wide as she processes all she has learned that night. "Why can't I talk about it to Mama?"_

_"Talking about anything related to the Snow Queen or even to Elsa makes your mother very, very sad, Anna. Perhaps you have wondered what has kept her in bed all these years, and now, finally, you will know. Your mother still grieves, every minute, of every day, for Elsa, because she loved her dearly, just as she loves you dearly. Sometimes it makes her so sad, she cannot get out of bed. You and I both want the best for her, don't we?" Gunnar asks, and Anna nods. "Very well. Then you understand why it is best to mention none of this to her - she is already so sad, and I know that you would not want to make her sadder still by bringing all up."_

_"I don't want to make her sad, Papa!" Anna exclaims passionately._

_"Then you must give me your word that, no matter what may happen, you won't speak of this to your mother or to anyone else. You must also promise that you will not go near or speak to the Snow Queen, or seek her out at all. Do you promise, Anna?" the king inquires gravely._

_"I promise," Anna whispers determinedly, pretending to lock her mouth up and throw away the key, which finally brings forth a smile from the somber ruler of Arendelle._

_"To bed with you, then, Little One," he says, tickling her until giggles erupt, and then taking advantage of her thrashing to tuck her under the covers. "It is time for little Princesses, and even old kings, to go to bed."_

_"Yes, Father," Anna says, burrowing under her blankets, but even after he has left and blown out the candle, she lays awake, gazing out the window, never having been more glad in her entire life that it is late May instead of winter._

_~ Present ~_

"Father told me, when I heard strange noises one night. He said I was never to try and find her, because even locked up, she's dangerous ..."

"But you did?" Rapunzel asks, almost in awe of Anna's daring.

"Yes," Anna admits in a hushed voice. "It was an accident, I was playing, and I stumbled upon a secret entrance to the dungeons." Rapunzel nods, indicating that she should continue. Neither girl doubts for a second that Anna explored the hidden staircase; they are too similar, and know too well the burning curiosity that comes from being confined for years on end. "And down there … I saw her."

"The Snow Queen?"

"Yeah."

_~ ~ Anna ~ Age 8 ~ ~_

_In all fairness, Anna intends to keep the promise she made to her father. Three winters come and pass, and Anna skirts away from even the gently falling snowflakes that stick to the icy castle windows. She looks over her shoulder every few seconds when she is forced to venture outside, and tiptoes carefully over the snow, lest even her heavy winter boots sink into it. _

_However, the coming of gentler breezes and the steady, even tempo of the rain pounding down to eat away the snow go a long way to ease Anna's mind, and by midsummer each year, she has abandoned all caution and worry as she dances through the plush emerald grass surrounding her home._

_Late summer evenings make for extended hours of play, and on one such evening, Anna explores the castle grounds for hour upon hour, hoping to discover new secrets or even hidden passageways. The sky is barely painted with periwinkle dusk by the time the princess even registers the late hour. Her father, she knows, has been in trade negotiations all day, and her mother is likely resting, perhaps with the window cracked open to enjoy the cool summer breeze. If no servant has sought her out yet, she deems she has at least another hour of play until someone notices her absence, and continues to stage a pretend ballet on the sweeping castle lawns. _

_The turns and twirls of her acrobatics require Anna to expand her make-believe stage, until it reaches the stone wall surrounding the castle. Trying to avoid the rocks that have come up so suddenly beside her during her inattention, Anna stumbles and falls, scraping her arm on stone. This isn't unusual for the slightly clumsy princess, and in seconds she is back on her feet again, with only a cursory glance at the shallow scrape. However, her gaze is caught by the stone that she'd hit, which looks suspiciously separated from the others. Curious, and well aware that her slight weight isn't enough to dislodge a stone wall, Anna investigates, only to discover that particular stone is loose and not cemented into the wall like all the others._

_Had Anna been a different child, with a less sheltered and more stimulating upbringing, she might have reported the loose stone to the castle guard or even her parents, and might have been aware of how dangerous a weakness in the wall or a previously unknown hideout could be. As far as she is concerned, however, the greatest peril is associated with the Snow Queen that resides in the dungeons below the very castle itself, and anything outside can hardly compare to the evil of the one that had killed her older sister for no particular reason other than a thirst for blood._

_So, Anna immediately gets to work moving the stone, with occasional glances around for patrolling guards. As said guards are actively on the lookout for external dangers, none of them has the time nor inclination to monitor the activities of a eight-year-old princess, so long as no one is causing her harm. She is able to wrestle the large boulder from its spot in the wall undetected, and ducking inside, she discovers this particular pillar of the wall is hollow: there are additional rocks missing, creating a small, winding tunnel that Anna easily fits into. Without a second thought, and gleeful at her discovery, she crawls on her hands and knees, unmindful of the dirt gathering on her dress, into the small space. It continues for a few feet and around a bend, then slopes into descending stone staircase that winds down and out of sight._

_A lantern sits in an alcove at the beginning of the staircase, a layer of dust indicating it has been long abandoned. After a few tries, Anna is able to light the lantern with the matches that accompany it, and she holds it aloft, peering down the spiral staircase. The light only illuminates down a couple of turns, however, so Anna creeps closer and closer, suddenly aware of the chill of the dank air, and the delicate summer slippers adorning her feet. If Gerda or Kai, or, God forbid, her father, found her here, she would be in huge trouble, strangely, this lends the adventure even more appeal instead of detracting from it. Her stomach tightens with excitement at the thought of what she might discover, and the thrill of something unfamiliar, something yet to be explored in the nooks and crannies of the grounds she thought she knew so well, spurs her on._

_"Hello?" the princess whispers, but there is no answer save for a slight echo of the greeting, and Anna immediately feels foolish. It is clear that the passage has been long abandoned, so she doesn't see the harm in exploring a little further._

_She edges further and further down the staircase, the lantern's glow illuminating her path, sure that around every curve and corner, she will finally discover the end of the passageway. In reality, it is many long minutes before the darkness lessens of its own accord and the passage, once sloping so steeply downward, begins to level. The steps end at last, and Anna reaches the bottom only to find herself in an abandoned prison cell._

_She knows this particular cell must be nonfunctional; the iron gate hangs off its hinges at an odd angle, leaving a gaping opportunity for escape. The bars of the cell next to her, in contrast, are continuous and straight, the gate unscathed, she is sure if said gate were closed, it would fulfill its purpose of keeping a potential criminal inside. As it is, however, the next three or four cells are all empty, their doors slightly open, functional but not currently in use. Anna leaves the cell with the hidden staircase carefully, making sure to note its location, before following the row of lit torches past the row of cells._

_The dungeon, as Anna figures the underground prison must be, could hold dozens of people, thought she supposes it is good that Arendelle doesn't have quite that many criminals. In fact, she would assume the entire prison to be unoccupied if not for the story her father had told her more than two years ago. According to him, this was where they kept the Snow Queen. Up until now, Anna has been able to keep from directly disobeying any rules on this venture. She knows she isn't supposed to be down here, but no one has told her explicitly that she cannot explore hidden tunnels found accidentally in the castle walls. She has been told, quite explicitly, however, that she is not to look for the Snow Queen, or to go anywhere near her, and until today, Anna hasn't even the faintest desire to. The icy witch killed her sister without even a second thought, in addition to causing a snowstorm __inside __the walls of the castle! As if that isn't enough, it is apparently nigh impossible to kill her. All of these things bespeak great danger._

_Still, Anna creeps further down the hallway, away from the hidden stairs._

_After all, what will one glimpse hurt? She can just peek at the woman that had caused her parents so much pain, maybe discern something in the sorceress's face that would even begin to explain why she had murdered a three-year-old, and then go on her way. There is no need for the Snow Queen to even know she is here. And try as she might, she can't make herself leave without satiating her curiosity about the one responsible for the lonely life she currently leads._

_The hallway ends abruptly, depositing Anna in what must be the main commons of the dungeons. Several larger cells line the edges of the cavernous enclosure, and a shorter hallway to Anna's right leads to a thick stone door, which is barred heavily shut. She assumes this must be the main entrance to the dungeons and is relieved that any dungeon guards must be watching from the other side of the door._

_Only two of the prison cells house anything besides dust, shackles, and vermin. One holds a smashed bookcase, with various tomes spread haphazardly around it, a sad-looking desk that had definitely seen better days, and rusted bed constructed completely out of metal. In the other, Anna can make out a hunched, seemingly unconscious figure with a head of silvery white hair: The Snow Queen._

_She hardly looks dangerous, Anna muses as she cautiously approaches, in fact, if she didn't know better, she might have assumed the figure to be either very sick or perhaps some sort of misfortunate beggar. As it is, she can hardly imagine the Snow Queen, fearsome sorceress or not, doing her any harm in this state, and deems it safe to get a close-up look._

_When Anna is finally close enough to reach out and touch the Snow Queen, if she so desired, she lets out an involuntary gasp. She has hardly seen anyone in such a state, and if not for her father's assurances, and strained, uneven breaths of the figure, Anna would have believed the Snow Queen to be dead. The witch's back is crisscrossed in a pattern of dried blood, effectively gluing the coarse, white fabric of a roughly made shift to her body. She has never seen even the aftermath of anything so violent, save for perhaps in a book, and she finds herself unable to tear her gaze from where puddles of blood had dried a deep, brownish red, and she can't help shudder at what injuries might cause so much blood to escape._

_Anna's wide, astonished blue eyes continue cataloging the details. The ice witch is beyond starved and sickly, she is emaciated, as if she hasn't eaten in years instead of weeks or months. She is also relatively small, height wise at least, and Anna estimates that, if standing, the Snow Queen might be as tall as a ten or eleven-year-old child, if that. The hair that she had assumed was white is in fact platinum blonde and matted and tangled with dried blood as well, and even from a few feet away, the entire cell smells foul. _

_The only adornment in the cell, besides the chains encircling the unconscious figure's raw wrists and ankles, is a metal bucket in a corner, but Anna supposes that the prisoner may not often be in a state that allows her to get to it, especially with her legs the way they are. Bruises mottle the deathly pale skin, turning it a splotchy mix of vivid purple and more healed yellows and greens. The Snow Queen's feet have not escaped unscathed either, even on the soles of both feet, where there aren't bruises, scrapes, or chafing from the manacles, Anna sees deep cuts latticing both surfaces, mirroring the pattern on the witch's back. None of the lacerations look to be healing well, and it is surprising that infection itself hasn't caused the sorceress's demise. _

_Anna isn't sure how to feel, how to react, and wishes she had not indulged her curiosity, desperately craves to turn back time and head back up the staircase and never enter this accursed dungeon at all. Because although her head tells her that her sister's murderer deserves this pain, and all the punishments in the world and more can't bring Elsa back, her heart doubts. Does the Snow Queen, evil as she is, deserve this? Does anyone? And why, why would anyone hold onto life at all, in the midst of such torture?_

_They are questions that, no matter how sharp, no matter how bright, no matter how precocious, Anna's eight-year-old intellect cannot answer._

_Wanting to be rid of the nightmare in front of her and the moral quandary it presents, Anna begins to back away from the prison cell. In her haste, however, she forgets the rough, uneven texture of the stone floor, and being rather clumsy even at the best of times, finds herself sprawled on the ground. A sharp twinge of agony shoots up her ankle as she lands on it, and Anna cries out inadvertently at the sudden pain. The noise is much louder than she had intended, and made even louder still by the still, ominous silence of the underground prison. As Anna watches with horrified eyes, clutching her damaged ankle, the Snow Queen stirs._

_Before she can scramble so much as a few inches backward, the figure in the cell slowly, painfully raises her head a few inches. All Anna can see is the faint outline of a face behind even more tangled, bloody blonde hair, no expression of hatred or eyes alight with malice. Just achingly slow movements and slight shaking as the Snow Queen struggles to keep her head elevated. Scared beyond measure, Anna awaits her fate, cursing her own foolishness while trying not to imagine the reactions of her parents when they found a second child murdered by the Snow Queen._

_But no magic comes forth. Instead, in a thin, quiet voice, raspy with disuse, the limp form asks, "Anna?"_

_In her surprise, Anna answers without thinking. "You know my name?"_

_"Of course," the figure murmurs, every word seemingly to cause her great effort. Even that, however, cannot disguise that she deems her answer painfully obvious._

_Intrigued, and convinced that the ice witch is in no state to hurt her, Anna doesn't move. "Are you really the Snow Queen?" she wonders aloud, more to herself than to her companion._

_"The Snow Queen?" the voice ponders, as if this thought has never occurred to her before. After a few painfully long seconds, the Snow Queen raises a few swollen, purple fingers, and makes a tiny gesture. As she does, a frigid breeze escapes from the cell, causing Anna to gasp and shiver as snowflakes settle on her dress, in her hair, and stick to the ground around her. However, seemingly unable to sustain the magic, the Snow Queen lets the wind die down before answering, "Yes, I suppose I am."_

_"Why?!" The question bursts from Anna's mouth, desperate to be heard and loaded with pain._

_"I cannot change who I am," the voice replies, and it strikes Anna how young the Snow Queen sounds, how vulnerable and sad. "I can't help having magic. Believe me, I've tried."_

_"Then why don't you just die?!" Anna screams at her angrily. "You deserve it!"_

_"I would if I could," the voice admits tiredly. "You think this life is worth living? I remember a different life. I was a person once too, I think."_

_"Why did you go bad, then? Why did you do it? Didn't you have a home? Didn't you have a family that loved you? Didn't you have a name?"_

_"My name ... was Elsa."_

_Any sympathy Anna might have been experiencing evaporates in an instant as white hot anger and disbelief flare within her chest, and she regards the Snow Queen with undisguised disgust. "W-what? No. No! You're lying. How could you? How could you mock my sister after YOU KILLED HER?!" she screams, riddled with grief._

_"No ... I ..."_

_Anna cuts across the sorceress's week protests, unwilling to be fooled again. "You're evil! Here I was, wondering if anyone deserved all this torture ... Well you do! You deserve it! How could you, I-I hate you, I ..."_

_" ... A-Anna ... I ..."_

_But Anna is backing haphazardly away, tripping over herself in her hurry to escape. "I'm leaving!" she shouts, tears streaming down her cheeks in desolate rivers. "I hope you rot down here! You killed my sister ... y-you think it's funny ... well, you're going to be down here forever until you die! And even that isn't a bad enough punishment!" Clutching handfuls of her dress, Anna begins to outright run down the stone hallway towards the cell with the stairs that lead above. Her ankle throbs painfully, but the adrenaline racing through her veins allows her to ignore it. "I hope you go to Hell!" she yells tearfully, one last time, heart aching. She doesn't look back again._

_Panting and gasping, Anna emerges from the tunnel a half hour, her forehead smeared with dirt and her dress beyond ruined. She collapses into the relieved arms of Kai, her father's advisor and head of the castle servants, who had been fretfully searching for the young princess by lantern light. He holds the little girl as she sobs, occasionally gasping incoherent words, until she calms. When the last few teardrops have dried in salty trails on her cheeks, he cautiously asks her where she has been, as he had been searching for her for more than an hour. Head hung in shame, Anna points._

_Upon investigation, Kai too finds the loose boulder and the tunnel within. Judging by the princess's appearance, she had fully explored her discovery. However, the old advisor's sharp eyes alight on the few, strangely unmelted snowflakes dusting the princess's adventure-tangled hair and the velvet shoulders of her once-beautiful gown. Pairing these clues, he comes to an incredulous but firm conclusion. "You've been to see the Snow Queen," his low voice discerns. It isn't a question._

_"It was an accident! Kai, I promise! You cannot tell father!" Anna cries before succumbing to tears once again._

_"Did she hurt you?" Kai asks, holding the little princess at arms length to examine her, but Anna shakes her head quickly._

_"No," she murmurs. "No. She didn't do anything."_

_Though the unending moisture coming from her eyes indicates otherwise, Anna attributes her likely-sprained ankle to a fall, and Kai decides to let the matter drop, providing he obtains her promise to never go near the Snow Queen again. It is much easier for Kai to replace the boulder than it had been for Anna, and he refuses her offers of help, telling the young heir to the crown to rest her ankle. Soon the rock is back in place, with nothing besides their knowledge to distinguish it from any of its innocent companions, and Kai scoops up the princess in his arms and carries her back toward the castle._

_"Kai?" Anna asks softly before they have gone too far. "How did you know about the Snow Queen?"_

_"Besides the you and the Queen, only Gerda and myself know for certain that the Snow Queen lies within the castle dungeons," Kai admits. "Your father knew that people would be suspicious. Gerda and I have served him longest, so he trusted us with the secret, knowing that we could help address questions that arose among the servants and villagers."_

_Anna nods before voicing her next, seemingly unrelated, question, "What did Elsa look like? No one has ever told me."_

_Kai sighs, figuring that the princess is simply in one of her more inquisitive moods. He can't see the harm in indulging her, especially since it is difficult to find anyone within Arendelle who knows much about the deceased princess. "She looked a lot like you," Kai says, and Anna's sharp, wide eyes note the sad smile upon his face. "Same nose. Same big, beautiful blue eyes," he says, turning his smile upon her fondly, and she giggles. "The main difference was her hair," he continues. "It was pale blonde, so blonde it was nearly white," he reveals, and Anna gasps. Suddenly suspicious, he questions her sudden curiosity._

_"Kai, I ... I think the Snow Queen ... I think she's a shape-shifter," Anna says quietly._

_"Why do you say that?" Kai asks urgently, almost sharply. He stops walking abruptly, wanting to impress upon Anna the seriousness of her statement._

_"S-she made herself look like Elsa," Anna whispers in an anguished voice. "Or how Elsa would have looked, I guess. She did it t-to tease me, and to mock Elsa!"_

_Kai curses lowly, and it is a mark of Anna's extreme distress that she barely registers the language. "Even after all the pain and hurt she has caused, she still feels the need to torture members of your family," he says. "Anna, I do not understand it, but you must realize this: Even at her weakest, lowest point, the Snow Queen is still evil and cunning. She proved this once again tonight. You must never go back there, do you understand me?"_

_His firm words bring back another promise, one that she had made three years ago and broken today. Though any physical hurt she experienced is her own fault, Anna finally realizes the gravity of the situation. The Snow Queen is extremely dangerous. She isn't something to be curious about or even tell tales about. She is an evil that must stay contained until she can be destroyed. "I promise," she tells Kai, with even more conviction than she'd had when she was five._

_Anna expects to have to dodge her father's questions upon returning to the castle, but as it turns out, he hadn't even noticed her absence. Rather, it had been a fretting Gerda that had sent Kai after her. Kai tells her not to mind her father; there is a terrible famine in the Southern Isles that her father is having to contend with, as they haven't sent the goods they promised yet still have the gall to ask for aid. Anna cannot doubt the advisor's words, as King Gunnar is still muttering about surpluses and how much to gift to the Southern Isles when he bids her goodnight._

_Much like that fateful night three years previously, sleep evades her for hours. Nestled in layers of warm blankets, despite the mild season, Anna lies awake late into the night. Silent tears create puddles of sorrow upon her downy pillows, and the images from that day's wayward adventure stain her mind. She cries for Elsa, who is dead, she cries for the sisterhood they never got to have, and she cries for her family, unable to fathom the depths of the Snow Queen's wickedness. She cries as she tries to push pictures of the Snow Queen posing as Elsa, bloody and dying, from her mind, as she knows dwelling on them would only bring the witch satisfaction._

_She doesn't know that, stories below her, another little girl cries as well, her heart breaking with the knowledge that even her baby sister now considers her and her powers evil._

_~ ~ TBC ~ ~_


	2. Chapter 2

**I am so sorry this update has taken this long, but here it is, and Happy Valentine's Day! I would like to thank everyone for their reviews, favorites, and follows. Every single one honestly means a lot to me, and I'm glad everyone is enjoying the story so far. I am not overly fond of author's notes, but there are a few things I feel the need to clear up, so I will try to make this quick:**

**Yes, Rapunzel is featured in this story, but as it will mainly be focused on Anna and Elsa, so I decided not to make it a crossover. Worry not; our favorite princess of Corona will have her part to play :) And yes, for the purposes of this story, Rapunzel met Eugene, escaped from Mother Gothel, and was reunited with her parents at age 15 rather than 18, to allow her and Anna time to get to know each other and become friends before this story starts!**

**A word of caution: I have decided to up the rating of this story from T to M as of next chapter. A few people remarked that the first chapter was dark, and I have to warn you, the night is darkest just before the dawn. Things will get worse before they get better, and this story will feature very dark themes and mature content. Just a fair warning. If you choose not to keep reading, I understand and do not blame you in the slightest. To those who will venture on with me, I present to you without further ado, chapter two.**

* * *

_~ ~ Anna ~ Present ~ ~_

"I had nightmares for years after," Anna admits to her cousin. "Down in the dungeon, I never saw her face, but in my dreams ... she had wide, gaping eyes, frosted blue, with no pupils, and rows of thin, sharp teeth, like Nidhogg."

Rapunzel grimaces, and then frowns in confusion. "Nidhogg?" she asks.

"Oh, he's just this big, giant, scary, ugly worm," Anna says offhandedly with an impatient gesture. "I saw a picture of him in a book of the old stories and I guess it kinda stuck with me. Anyway, it discouraged me from visiting her again ... until I was fifteen, least."

"You saw her again? Oh, Anna, how? Why? What made you go back?" Rapunzel asks.

"I didn't go back for seven years," Anna says slowly. "And when I did, it was stupid, really, it wasn't even about that ..."

_~ ~ Anna ~ Age 15 ~ ~_

_After the incident with the Snow Queen, Anna does her best to forget the entire affair. She often notes Kai's eyes upon her as she roams the castle by day, caught up in her eight-year-old daydreams, but she pretends to have moved on and left all memories and thoughts of the Snow Queen behind her in the dust.__However, try as she might, bits and pieces of her ordeal linger at the back of her mind, like that last, dirty bit of winter snow that ices over and refuses to melt. She sleeps with a pillow over her head, fastened there tight by her arms, and when her father remarks jokingly upon it, she tells him part of the truth: she doesn't want to be woken by the castle staff working and cleaning at night. In reality, she fears that hearing the Snow Queen's anguished noises might cause her to doubt her resolve to forget the whole mess and dismiss the witch as evil._

_In addition, Anna begins spending much of her spare time in the castle library. This delights her parents, for as she will someday take over the throne, they say it would do her well to be well-read. Anna just smiles, surprised that they are so easily fooled. A child who once ran rampant through the grounds, flitted about in fey wanderings at all hours of the night, content to spend her days cooped up in the library? The very thought is preposterous, but the King and Queen believe what they want, what is easiest. Years later, Anna wonders if she was raised to do the same.__Whatever anyone else's opinions, Anna puts her time in Arendelle's extensive castle library to good use. She reads with a voraciousness that her studies have never managed to inspire in her before, pouring over book after book that has anything to do with snow, ice, magic, or legends thereof. Such searches seem fruitless; the only books with magic she manages to find are either fairytales for very young children or religious tomes warning against sorcery and heresy. It occurs to her that her father may have removed any other books on magic years ago, in order to research a way to end the Snow Queen, but she doesn't dare ask for them, even though she is motivated by curiosity rather than vengeance._

_Over the years, her father grows more paranoid still, often shutting the gates of the castle and allowing fewer and fewer visitors. Anna interprets this to mean that the Snow Queen lives on; unfortunately, it also makes her lonely existence that much more isolated. The rest of her childhood passes in a similar such fashion, slipping away slowly through her fingers as her interest in her old games dwindles and each day she finds it harder to remember how to 'play'. The evil Snow Queen eventually becomes just a too-vivid nightmare of old, especially as her thirteenth birthday arrives and the King begins to take her education as the next ruler of Arendelle much more seriously. Once in a while, while sitting in a dreadfully boring meeting with Arendelle's High Council, Anna ponders amusedly what would happen if she asked them all about the Snow Queen. "That is all well and good," she hears herself saying, "but I would rather hear what you think we should do with the evil sorceress residing in our dungeons." The daydream makes her snort in a rather unladylike way, earning her a scowl from her father. Occasionally, when stymied by the roundabout speech of visiting dignitaries, Anna wistfully imagines her sister Elsa by her side, calm and competent and made to rule in a way Anna sometimes thinks she isn't. Elsa might share a secret smile with her, roll her eyes at the ridiculous nature of politics, and politely excuse them to go indulge in the chocolate fondue instead._

_Although Anna isn't particularly queenly like the imaginary Elsa, she does try. She cares about Arendelle and its citizens, and perseveres through her boredom. She tries to remember to walk instead of sprint, curtsy gracefully instead of trip over her own feet, and eat her soup daintily rather than slurping it hungrily. The latter resolution leaves her quite hungry after some meals, as the courses are often taken away before she can finish picking at them fastidiously.__One such meal and her later protesting stomach necessitate a visit to the kitchens to raid the secret store of chocolate the head chef keeps for her. However, when she reaches the expansive kitchens, she finds them empty save for her father, and she suspects the King would not approve of her sugar fixation._

_King Gunnar is fixing tea for himself and the queen, a nightly ritual, and Anna figures he won't take long and lingers behind a corner to wait. She had always found it sweet and humble that her father chose to make the tea and deliver to his wife himself, rather than have a castle servant deliver it, but tonight it is simply inconvenient. It's a miracle the king cannot hear her stomach rumble at the very thought of her favorite dessert._

_As she watches, however, willing her father to hurry, King Gunnar glances surreptitiously around before pulling out a small pouch. With nimble fingers, he opens the pouch shakes a bit of the substance inside into one of the teacups. After dissolving the mysterious powder quickly, the king adds sugar and milk to both cups before finally taking the tray and leaving the kitchens. Anna is free to indulge her chocolate addiction, but she has rarely felt less hungry in her life._

_What was that stuff her father had put in her mother's cup? Surely, surely, it was simply some sort of medicine, right? One that maybe tasted better when mixed into tea? Anna thinks of her mother, lying limply in bed, day after day, unable to summon the energy to even make it to the dining room for meals. She thinks of the sadness in the Queen's eyes, the weakness of her limbs, the way a simple conversation can leave her so drained she sleeps for hours._

_The palace physicians, in the months after Elsa's death, had said the Queen was simply grieving, or so Gerda has told her. After a year with no power nor will to resume her usual duties as queen or leave her bed to care for the recently-toddling Anna, the doctors had said her mother was suffering from a sort of depression. As a mother who had lost a child, her spirit was weak and her thoughts were dark. The best thing Gunnar and Anna could do, they said, was give her time. Anna had been fed that line until she was six. After that, her father rarely summoned the physicians to examine her mother, and even when he did, usually at someone else's cajoling, they had no more answers than before._

_Anna had accepted long ago that it was unlikely her mother would recover. After hearing about the Snow Queen, she'd harbored a secret suspicion that the ice witch had worked her magic upon Arendelle's Queen as well. When she'd voiced such thoughts to her father, he had disagreed gently but firmly, saying the Snow Queen hadn't managed to get anywhere near her or her mother. After that, she'd been left with the unsatisfying yet unavoidable theory that her mother had somehow acquired some sort of mysterious illness._

_She continues to hope, silly as it may seem, that a doctor from a foreign land might come by chance to Arendelle someday, recognize her mother's symptoms, and restore the Queen to her former glory. It seems unfair that the loss of her sister had coincided with the loss of her mother as well, and though Elsa is and will always be beyond her reach, Queen Katherine still clings to life, although for how much longer, Anna isn't sure._

_Now she has to wonder, now the thoughts nibble away at the edges of her brain, invading where she can't stop them, even as her head falls into her hands. Could her father be poisoning her mother?_

_The mere thought sounds preposterous, and Anna wants to deny it at once. But there have always been things about the entire Snow Queen affair that don't sit completely still within her mind, and now she has this to add to the list._

_She has seen her parents together, there is no doubt that her father goes out of his way to take exceptional care of the fragile Queen, in fact, Anna had been told more than once as a child that she would have to be content with Kai or Gerda tucking her in, as the King was occupied and couldn't leave his wife. And Anna can only assume that the palace physicians have looked for signs of and tested for poison during their examinations. So really, there should be nothing for her to suspect at all._

_Why had her father been so mysterious about the ingredient he'd added to the tea, then? If it were some sort of medicine, he would hardly have reason to act so suspiciously. Maybe it was some sort of illegal substance that he wasn't supposed to have, but that was supposed to help the Queen? Or perhaps it was an untested remedy, one the King would feel foolish for trusting in? Yet, Anna cannot completely make herself believe that. There have been too many questions, too many mysteries throughout her life for that kind of naivety. She feels guilty for suspecting her father of attempted murder, but stupid for disregarding the possibility. Growling aloud in frustration, Anna drags her hands over her face before deciding that finding out the truth is better than being left to guess and accuse._

_So she waits outside her parents' suite until she sees her father leave. Probably to go torture the Snow Queen she thinks, and the venom that accompanies the thought surprises her, followed quickly by distrust. What has her father been doing down there for all those years, anyway? How hard could it be for him and some soldiers to kill an already-subdued sorceress? She may be magic, but unless she is one of the Old Norse gods resurrected from myth, she isn't immortal._

_The questions don't stop. It is as if something captive in her mind has gotten free, and in its freedom it has bred, multiplying until she doubts even the color of the sky and what she can see with her very own eyes. How much of her life has been a lie? And if the answer is most or all, what, then, is the truth?_

_She is so preoccupied that the sound of her father softly shutting the door to the suite he shares with her mother startles her terribly, nearly causing her to give away her position. The king's face is draped in shadow, and as such Anna finds it easier to imagine a sinister expression upon it, even though she doubts that is the case. She waits until he has been gone for several minutes before cautiously nudging open the bedroom door._

_The sounds of soft breathing permeate the room, indicating her mother is already asleep. Anna makes sure to tiptoe as she hurries to her side. The Queen's breathing is shallow but even, and although she looks pale and tired, Anna can't discern any other side effects of a would-be poison. She presses her knuckles to her mother's forehead, feeling for fever, but the Queen's skin is pleasantly warm and at just the temperature Anna would have expected it to be. Sighing, she is about to turn away, sure that her overactive imagination, spurred on by the whole Snow Queen affair, has run away with her again, when she notices the teacup. Sitting on the nightstand beside her mother, Anna can be fairly certain it's hers, the King's lies empty near the tray on the desk._

_In the rays of the dying sun that paint the sky in bright, bloody colors, Anna reaches out her hand and then hesitates. What is she doing? Curiosity wins out, however, and Anna sets her jaw determinedly, deciding that she must at least put her suspicions to rest, unreasonable as they might be. The Queen doesn't even stir as one pale hand snakes out to snag the teacup, careful to preserve the liquid inside. Anna leaves the room at a near run and doesn't slow until she is inside her room, door locked, her body pressed against it as extra insurance. To her relief, the majority of the leftover tea is still inside._

_She stores it on the floor behind one of her bedposts before tumbling into bed to struggle with a restless, uneasy slumber.__The next morning comes to early, as it always seems wont to do, according to Anna. Upon waking, she tips her head over the edge of the bed to check for the cup, and in doing so, falls completely out of bed, covers tangled uncomfortably around her, only to discover the small piece of china utterly undisturbed. Great, Anna, she thinks to herself. Very smooth. I begin the one day I'd like to avoid notice by falling out of bed. Seems promising._

_Anna dresses quickly in her most nondescript clothes; true, her navy dress won't exactly pass for peasant townsfolk, but her heavy grey cloak will mostly cover most of the intricate details that mark it as expensive. She pairs the ensemble with her plainest boots and a dark turquoise shawl draped over her head and shoulders, hoping it might help to hide her rather distinctive hair. She arranges the teacup in a basket among various blankets and rags, praying it doesn't spill, before letting herself out of her room and into the empty surrounding hallway._

_As a child, she'd found the large, drafty castle with its few servants rather lonely and drab, but today, the lack of significant occupation serves her well. Years of solitude gave her more than ample time to explore, and today she easily finds a route that allows her to avoided potentially populated areas. By the time she steps out onto the grounds, she hasn't run into a single soul._

_Luck seems to be sitting on her shoulder today, for the gates are open to briefly admit a shipment of something or another; the wooden crates are unlabeled. There are, of course, ways around the gates, and Anna alone knows several, but all either take precious time or risk detection. The open gates are like a beacon to her, beckoning her onward, and by ducking her head and slipping through the small mass of confused guards and merchants, she is able to pass quickly through the gates without arousing suspicion._

_Once she is a respectable distance from the castle, she pauses to survey her surroundings. Her plan is to take the teacup to an apothecary, and hope that someone there might be able to tell her what it in it (besides tea, of course). She knows there is one not too far into the small town of Arendelle, but as she has passed it with her father, she knows it supplies the castle and doesn't want someone frequenting it on a royal errand to recognize her._

_Fortunately, Anna has been made aware by her long days in the library that some plants and herbs have effects that are illegal, substances that some would pay great amounts of money to acquire. She hopes that the slightly shadier part of Arendelle might house another apothecary shop a bit more off the beaten track. It is a relatively small town, but she has learned that it does have unofficial sectors, one of which is slightly less well-off than the others. She can only hope that there might be a second apothecary there, or else she will have to risk recognition by either asking around or visiting the shop she's familiar with._

_Autumn is upon Arendelle, bringing with it biting winds and golden leaves that dance through the streets. Anna dearly longs for a cup of hot cider, but instead of treating herself she keeps her head down, ducking through streets and stall and alleyways. It is well over half an hour later that she finally locates a potentially promising alley. The distinctions are subtle, but to Anna's sharp eyes the street looks a little dirtier, the houses a bit shabbier. No children play merrily on these cobblestones, no venders advertise their wares in carrying voices._

_Slightly nervous, Anna glances around before slipping into the alleyway. It is deserted save for her, and she peers at the signs that designate various buildings. One appears to be a dingy tavern, while another caters to those seeking coffins. Anna is most intrigued by house that claims to hold a fortunetelling gypsy, but she forces herself to continue on._

_Finally, near the end of the street, there is a small shop with grungy windows that showcase snakeskins and vivid, dangerous looking plants. Anna is so relieved to discover its existence that she is barely put off by its appearance and bounces happily inside. Signs behind the empty counter tell of remedies for colds, flu, warts, sores, and other unpleasant afflictions. Various dried herbs hang in bundles next to closed barrels that emit odd scents. Seeing as the shop is empty, Anna feels some exploration can't hurt, and approaches one of the barrels at random._

_As she reaches for it, however, a voice calls out, "What're yeh doin?" and she gasps and spins around, heart beating wildly. Behind the counter is a small, gruff looking man, dressed in a thick, tough black apron over plain grey clothing. His hair is sheared near to his scalp, the short bristles revealing it to be dark grey. Grizzled black eyebrows sit like caterpillars over murky, penetrating hazel eyes, and stubble from lack of shaving covers his jaw. He's shorter than fifteen-year-old Anna, but stout and strong looking, with large hands and yellowing nails. In Anna's sheltered life, he is perhaps the scariest person she has ever seen._

_"I - " she squeaks, but her voice deserts her under his stare as her heart gallops ever more quickly in her chest._

_Her fear and non-threatening appearance seem to put the man at ease, and he relaxes slightly, studying her thoughtfully instead of aggressively. "What can'r do fer yeh, missy?" he asks in a doubtful tone, likely of the opinion that she'd wondered in here by mistake. Even without jewels and silk, small things betray Anna's high status. Most peasants did not wear such fine clothes, nor bear such a regal air and a cleanly, well-cared for appearance._

_"I, um ... wondered if you could help me," Anna says quickly. "I need a substance identified, it might be poison, I don't know. I'll pay you well," she promises him. The man considers and then shrugs. Anna figures he has dealt with stranger requests, more dangerous or illicit substances, and likelier than not folk more mysterious and sinister than her. As he reaches for the basket, however, brow furrowed, she pulls it back involuntarily. "Um ..." she says, wondering how to phrase her request. "You can't, uh, tell anyone about this," she stammers. "I ... I'll pay you, however much you require, not to speak of this to anyone."_

_The man's face doesn't betray much emotion, but Anna can tell he is surprised by her request. "Yeh doin' somethin illegal, missy? Yeh don look the type." He studies her carefully before continuing, "Don't s'pose it be my buserness, though. I don usually ask. 'S the reason most come here."_

_Anna pulls a hefty pouch of money from the inner folds of her cloak. "You're right," she tells him, willing her voice not to tremble. "I need you to figure out what this is, and then never speak of it again." When the man reaches for the basket a second time, Anna allows him to detangle it from her limp fingers. She stows the money again, wary of what other customers might have reason to visit the shop, and watches the man unearth the teacup, surprise written across his features. Anna says nothing, and he soon looks away and immerses himself in his work. He stirs the tea, scoops some of dregs at the bottom out and places them to heat over a fire. Then he splits the majority of what's left between various small dishes and adds different powders, liquids, or a mix of the two to each one. When he returns again from the fire, Anna sees that all the water has evaporated from the dregs, leaving a cake of olive powder._

_Most of the tests yield no visible results, and Anna grows anxious as the minutes pass, wondering if the apothecary will be able to give her any useful information at all. Finally, after digging around in the back room for several minutes, the man produces a vivid yellow tonic that, when combined with the powder, produces fizzing, bubbles, and a small wisp of smoke.__"Wouda looky at that?" the shop owner says, seemingly very pleased with himself. "No wonder I coud'n figure out what t'was. Tasteless, odorless, colorless, on'y responds to one thing."_

___~ ~ Present ~ ~_

"What was it?" Rapunzel gasps, pulling Anna briefly from her narrative. She seems unable to take the suspense, as her hands are balled tightly in the folds of her dress, wrinkling it nearly past salvation "Was it dangerous? Was it poison?"

Anna shakes her head. "It wasn't poison," she says slowly. "Well, not exactly at least."

_~ ~ Anna ~ Age 15 ~ ~_

_"What?!" Anna asks, pulled from her stupor. "What did you find, what is it?"_

_"This," the small herbalist tells her, indicating the powder and yellow liquid, which have calmed and now sit innocently as if they hadn't responded to each other at all, "is Sönv's Wort, mixed, as yeh migh' expect, with chamomile tea."_

_It doesn't quite have the desired effect, because although Anna has flipped through books of herbs, wondering if one could perhaps explain the Snow Queen's powers, she is hardly an expert and doesn't recognize the name Sönv's Wort. "Uh ... what is Sönv's Wort?" she asks, completely butchering the pronunciation._

_Sighing and most likely bemoaning the existence of wealthy damsels unfamiliar with herbs, the apothecary clears away the remnants of his experiments and slams a very large, very weathered book onto the counter in-between them. Anna jumps, but he disregards it, flipping until he finds the correct page, which he proudly stabs with a stubby finger. "There'tis," he says, gesturing at the yellowed tome. "Sönv's Wort. Also known as Aren-thistle and Assassin's Leisure."_

_"Assassin's Leisure? Why?" Anna asks eagerly, but the man simply points at the page in front of them. The young princess turns the book toward her quickly and reads,_

'Sönv's Wort, also called Aren-thistle and Assassin's Leisure. Found mostly in the mountains surrounding Arendelle, from which it pulls one of its names, and neighboring lands. The weed itself is benign, though it classifies as a weed due to its uselessness, as no known animal consumes it for sustenance. It is characterized by small, pale blue flowers with six-petal, star-like points and clover-like leaves. When dried and crushed into a powder, Sönv's Wort is odorless, tasteless, and colorless, essentially undetectable. However, whence consumed by humans in large enough amounts, it produces short-term lethargy, muscle weakness, and fatigue. Assassins have been known to add it to food or drink of their intended victim, and when the unsuspecting target becomes drowsy and retires to bed, they are subdued and easy for the assassin to approach and kill undetected. Sönv's Wort reacts only with the venom of Vibera exsomnis ...'

_There is an illustration of the plant in question beside its description, and to Anna's eyes, it hardly looks malicious. In fact, it is rather unexceptional and she doubts anyone happening upon it would find it worth noting at all._

_"This only talks about short-term usage," Anna says finally, gesturing at the exposed pages. "What about if someone kept eating it? For like, years ..."_

_"I don know. Doubt 'nyone know. S'not really the point of it, is it?" the man chuckles harshly, not bothering to hide his amusement._

_Anna frowns, wasn't this guy supposed to be the expert? Obviously if she had realized the strangeness of the question, she wouldn't have asked in the first place. She refrains from voicing these thoughts, however, and instead inquires, "Where exactly does it grow? Is it rare? Is it difficult to find?"_

_"Haven't traveled much, have yer, missy?" the man asks, his tone dry and his inquiry blatantly hypothetical. "In't hard ter find. Yer don 'ave ter go more'n a few minutes inter the mountains and it's all o'er the place. Can' miss it."_

_Anna's trip to the castle takes much longer on the way back, but she doesn't particularly mind. In fact, she enjoys hiking up the hills surrounding the palace and trekking through the woods until she reaches the joining of the gate to the rock of the mountains that surround her home, and the tree with the branch that hangs so usefully over said wall. An army would not be able to reach the spot undetected, Anna reflects, but a slim fifteen-year-old girl can._

_Anna had managed to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach on the way back home, but as she drops back over the wall, dread writhes like snakes in her belly. She wants to disbelieve the day's fruitful yet disturbing revelations, but she cannot erase the knowledge, and nor can turn a blind eye to its implications. Her father, King Gunnar of Arendelle, known to the people as a fair, gentle, and wise king, has been purposely feeding his wife a plant that keeps her bedridden and weak. For nearly twelve years._

_WHY? Anna wants to scream it to the heavens, but knows it will do nothing except perhaps bring a castle guard running. She wants to believe her father ignorant of the plant's properties, wants to regard him as the man who had doted upon his wife and treasured his daughter, kissing her scraped knees and purposely losing to her in both chess games and mock sword fights, but she cannot. She cannot return to her state of blissful naivety any more than Adam and Eve could return to Eden. Now that she knows, she cannot un-know._

_As she reenters the castle, Anna readies a plausible excuse for her disappearance. It is now early afternoon, and someone had likely found at least her absence at mealtimes odd. She is loathe to face her father, and the universe smiles upon her for at least a minute more, because, just as he had when she was eight, it is Kai who finds her._

_The faithful old servant can hardly find fault with her excuse, and Anna mentally pats herself on the back when he swallows it without much fuss. He tells her the castle roof is hardly a safe place for reading, especially for a princess who gets lost in books for entire half-days, and Anna accepts the slight scolding meekly, agreeing to perhaps rethink her choice of reading spot. In fact, she might have agreed a bit too easily, because, as Kai reminds her, he has been trying to get Anna to abandon her roof-climbing habits since she was ten. Before the head servant can interrogate her any further, however, Anna launches into a stream of questioning that has been burning within her, and, coincidentally, can't fail to distract him._

_"I have to ask you something!" she blurts quickly before Kai can get a word in edgewise. "I want to know ... how did the Snow Queen kill Elsa? Did she freeze her?"_

_"Anna!"_

_"Did anyone see her?" Anna presses, a bit surprised at her own daring._

_"It was a closed casket." Kai says shakily, still shocked by her forwardness. "As far as I know, no one saw the body. The King said it was too horrible. I'm not even sure the Queen saw."_

_It isn't what she wanted to hear, but it is as she suspected. There have been too many secrets, too many lies, all centered around the Snow Queen, and she's determined to know why. "How did my father defeat the Snow Queen?"_

_"I don't know," Kai admits. He seems to have surrendered to her zealous curiosity, knowing from experience that she will give him no peace until her queries are answered._

_"Weren't you there?" Anna demands._

_"I was in a different part of the castle. I didn't get there until after," Kai explains. "You can't imagine ... there was ice and snow everywhere. That witch made a blizzard inside the castle, no one could see a foot in front of them."_

_Except apparently Father, Anna thinks. "Who was there, then? Who helped capture her?"_

_"Anna ... there was no one there," Kai tells her, almost gently, as if this entire story is hurting her. And in a way, it is. Her heart gets a little heavier with the weight of each word, with every lie revealed. "Your father subdued the Snow Queen on his own."_

_"He did it singlehandedly?" she asks, incredulous. "That isn't what he told me, he said he had help ..."_

_"The King probably did not want to boast, nor did he likely want to give details about the capture. His three-year-old daughter had just died. Holding your dead child in your arms can make you do things you never thought you could."_

_Kai's voice near the end is laden with sorrow, and the indignation of her father's lies, of righteous interrogation leaves her swiftly, leaving her empty but for guilt. The King's misdeeds aren't Kai's fault, all he has done is tell her the truth where no one else has. It isn't his fault she doesn't the truth of what had actually happened. The old servant is clearly reliving pain beyond his king and friend losing his daughter, pain that he can identify with because he has experienced it himself. And although he had always doted on her, it had never occurred to Anna to wonder why he wouldn't have children of his own. Ashamed, she whispers, "Kai, I'm sorry."_

_"You couldn't have known," he sighs, and she is relieved to see his eyes hold no condemnation. "Run along now, Anna. Let your father worry about the Snow Queen."_

_Once she has taken leave from Kai, however, Anna is left with only her own confusion, which soon simmers past betrayal and boils straight into rage. Alone in her room, she paces back and forth, arms gesturing wildly, an occasional angry word escaping her clenched jaw. She feels everything she has ever known has been a lie, and if she hadn't seen the Snow Queen with her own eyes, she wouldn't believe that unlikely tale either._

___~ ~ Anna ~ Present ~ ~_

"I don't understand," Rapunzel admits. "You already knew the Snow Queen was real. What made you go back?"

"I'm not saying it was the smartest thing to do. I just ... I was so mad. I hated him, I wanted to rage and scream and run, but I couldn't do any of that. I wanted him to hurt like I was hurting. I was a rash, emotionally-charged, hormonally-challenged fifteen-year-old ... so I did what I knew he would hate most: I went to see the Snow Queen."

Rapunzel smiles in sympathy. "I remember the feeling," she assures Anna. "When Mother Gothel told me time and time again that I couldn't leave my tower ... I was convinced there wasn't anything big enough in the universe to hold all my anger. I didn't understand how I could feel that acutely without exploding. And, well, you know how that turned out," Corona's princess says dramatically, and Anna giggles. "I ran away from home, with a wanted thief no less, befriended some thugs, almost drowned, fell in love with the wanted thief, lost my magic hair, brought the wanted thief back to life, and found out I was royalty."

"Well, when you put it that way," Anna smirks, "maybe visiting the Snow Queen for purely rebellious purposes wasn't all that bad." The two girls contemplate this for a second before falling into laughter. They try to giggle quietly so as not to wake up the castle, smothering their noises of mirth with pillows and blankets as they roll around. All the commotion wakes Pascal, who gives a very exaggerated yawn, and, failing to get the attention he feels he is warranted, turns ink black and begins to growl. It is all Anna can do to keep from giggling again; the dark color makes the small chameleon look like a pair of floating eyes. Rapunzel attempts to appease her pet, but he rebuffs her and refuses to be held.

"Someone's grumpy," she observes, rolling her eyes before turning back to Anna. "I'm not sure sailing agreed with him. Either that, or he really wanted that coat. Or he's still mad that Maximus wasn't allowed to come. I tried to explain that someone sane needs to stay with Eugene, but I don't think he was really listening."

Anna manages to give her cousin a smile in response, but the expression is shadowed already by what comes next in her story. Rapunzel correctly assumes this to mean that their brief foray into levity is over, and Anna finds herself, once again, thanking the universe for brightening her lonely existence with her cousin's seemingly-unlikely return. Who she would be without Rapunzel, her only friend and sole keeper of her secrets, she isn't sure she wants to know.

"So you went back down there," Rapunzel prompts, her wide eyes serious and focused. "What then?"

_~ ~ Anna ~ Age 15 ~ ~_

_It is dusk by the time Anna has made her decision, and once she has made it, she doesn't tarry nor delay. She knows what will make her father angriest, and once the idea occurs to her, she seizes it with fury-fueled fervor. She WILL know the truth, whether her father likes it or not, no matter how many deceptions and mysteries block her path. And although she knows the Queen of Snow to be a liar, it turns out that everyone else in her life isn't capable of telling her the truth either._

_So Anna sets out, sneaking through the castle and through the grounds using tricks that are second nature to her, to visit the Snow Queen a second time. This time, however, she is doing it purposely; seeking out the witch her father hates as an act of defiance. There is no guarantee that the icy sorceress will be any more truthful that anyone else, however, Anna hopes that the Snow Queen doesn't know the extent of her ignorance of the situation and might inadvertently reveal something. It's a slim chance to base such a dangerous trip upon, but anger burns hot and bright in Anna's chest, and inaction is not a valid option. Doing something, especially something forbidden, satisfies a part of Anna that had previously lain dormant._

_Who is this girl, Anna wonders. Rash and angry and daring. Was she in me all along, or have my decisions somehow spawned her within me?_

_The pillar with the secret tunnel is easy to find, because although Anna hasn't visited it in eight years, it has often occupied her thoughts. The stone that had once seemed like such an obstacle is hardly a barrier to her now, and soon she is crawling through the tunnel once again, though it is a noticeably tighter fit. Seven years have changed Anna's body from that of a child to that of a woman, and her hips, though slim, and shoulders occasionally scrape up against rock. She wonders, as she reaches the narrow staircase, who created the tunnel, and for what purpose. To Anna's relief, the lantern is still sitting there unobtrusively, and she ponders whether or not escaping prisoners would have been able to somehow carve their way out of Arendelle's dungeons. She doesn't know who else would have the motivation to do such a thing, but distracts herself by imaging how long such a feat would take, and what tools the prisoners could have used._

_These thoughts occupy her to the bottom of the staircase, which announces itself in the pale glow of distant torches along the wall. As she grows closer, Anna feels, for the first time since setting out on this reckless quest, a small twinge of nervousness. First the secret trip to the apothecary shop, and now this? It seems an awful lot of risk for a single day, but curiosity and determination whisper encouragement and she continues on._

_What shall she ask the Snow Queen first? Maybe, why had she come to Arendelle in the first place? Why had she targeted the three-year-old princess? What had made little Elsa such a threat? If the Snow Queen wanted the throne, she should have gone after the king and queen, and the two young heirs could have easily been dealt with after. The entire affair still makes no sense, and Anna's steps quicken slightly at the hope of answers awaiting her at the end of the corridor._

_Perhaps it was her preoccupation that kept her from noticing until it was nearly too late. Or maybe the noise truly hadn't registered. Whatever the cause, Anna approaches the Snow Queen's cell, not even bothering to conceal the sound of her footsteps, to find it occupied by not one, but two people. Later she will wonder how the cacophony hadn't given her prior warning. A woman's shrieks and pleading fill the air, nearly drowning out the accompanying male cursing and breaths of exertion. She wants to turn and run, to leave this place forever as she thought she could when she was eight years old._

_Frozen in place by horror and fear, Anna discovers that her father has beaten her to the Snow Queen._

___~ Present ~_

"She - she wasn't alone down there that time," Anna explains shakily to Rapunzel. "My father was there too."

"What was he doing? Was he trying to talk to her?" wonders Rapunzel innocently.

"No," Anna deadpans, "he was whipping her."

"What?!"


End file.
